Not Another Billionaire (Not Another Romance)

by R. L. Kenderson

  Seth looked over my shoulder. “Well, that is going to have to wait.”

  “It is?”

  “Yes.” He looked at his watch. “We have a meeting in ten minutes. So, grab whatever you need to take notes and meet me in the conference room.”

  “Okay.” I was already too embarrassed to ask him where the conference room was.

  “Thanks,” he said and started to walk away.

  I quickly opened a drawer to look for a notepad when he stopped and turned around.

  “Tessa?”

  “Hmm?”

  “You don’t have to be embarrassed. Everyone does it.”

  I gulped. “Does what, sir?” I winced. “I mean, Mr. Crawford. Ugh. Seth. I mean, Seth.”

  Surely, he couldn’t mean everyone checked out his junk, no matter how impressive it was.

  Tessa, you did not just describe your boss’s penis as impressive.

  “Everyone talks to themselves. And if they say they don’t, they’re lying.” He spun around and continued on.

  But I didn’t have any time to feel relief because he was almost out of sight.

  I found paper and a pen and hurried after him. So far, I had mistaken my boss for a delivery guy, forgotten to answer the phone, and checked out his anatomy. I was not going to get lost on my way to the conference room or be late because I couldn’t find it.

  Chapter Five

  Seth

  I leaned forward at the conference table. “Sounds good. Thanks for the updates.”

  The head of each department packed up their notes and left the conference room.

  I spun in my chair to face Tessa. “Would you like a tour of the rest of the floor?”

  She looked up from her notebook, where she had been scribbling furiously. “I’m sorry. What did you ask?”

  I smiled. “Now that you met the bosses, I thought we’d take a tour of where each department is located.”

  “That would be nice.”

  I stood and adjusted my jacket to wait for Tessa to stand as well, but her head was back down with her pen moving across the paper.

  “If it helps, Jill brings her laptop to type out notes, and she also records the meetings to save time.”

  Tessa paused but didn’t look up. “I guess I didn’t get that far in her instructions.”

  “Tessa?”

  She raised her eyes.

  “Get up and come with me. Everyone who was at the meeting is going to send us what we went over anyway.”

  She sighed. “You could have told me that right away.”

  Ooh, a little sass. I liked it.

  I shrugged. “But then I wouldn’t know how you handled meetings.” Pushing my hands in my pockets, I nodded toward the door. “Come on. Let me show you around.”

  “Okay, fine.” She made a show of acting like she was doing me a favor, but I saw the smile she was trying to hide.

  We started at the opposite end of the floor, farthest from where my office was.

  “You were already shown where HR is located, but just in case you need to complain about me, you can come back here.”

  HR was the only department that was separated from everyone. It had walls and a door to give my employees privacy if they needed it.

  I walked a few steps to the first set of cubicles. “Next, we have accounting.”

  Tessa’s eyes widened.

  “Something wrong with accounting?”

  She quickly shook her head. “Oh, no.”

  Odd. “Ladies and gentlemen, this is Ms. Archer. She will be filling in for Jill while she’s on her maternity leave. If you need something, contact her.”

  Tessa greeted everyone, and they returned her hellos.

  I continued on. “Next, we have sales.” Again, I introduced Tessa, and I did the same with the marketing department.

  We were to the middle of the floor and the best part of the office.

  “This is the Think Tank.” Inside, there were couches, recliners, a hammock or two, and other various things for employees to relax on. “Advertising is often objective, and sitting at a desk or in an office all day can mess with creativity. And that’s where this room comes in.”

  Tessa smiled. “I was wondering what this room was when I was shown the break room.”

  “Yeah, they’re right next to each other since food is another item people like to use to think.”

  We stepped up to the doorway, where about a dozen employees were sitting. Some of them sat up when they saw me and stopped talking to their coworkers even though the Think Tank had been my idea. I brushed it off—I was the boss after all—and introduced Tessa.

  “Next, we have creative development.” This part of the floor was not an open floor plan. Instead, there were offices lined up on each side. “This is where the creative department works. I wanted them to have their own offices, but as you can see, every door is open, and half of them are in the Think Tank.”

  Jayden Jacobson stepped out of his office. “Oh, hi, Seth. I thought I’d heard you.”

  I smiled politely but didn’t give the kid too much attention. He was awesome at his job and came up with some of the best ad copies I’d ever seen. But he was also an arrogant kiss-ass who only cared about himself. If he wasn’t so good at what he did, I’d get rid of him. He never actually broke any rules, he was always on time, and all his clients loved him, but he wasn’t fooling me. I did hope that his smarmy attitude was because he was still young and that he’d mature and grow out of it.

  “Jayden, this is Ms. Archer. She’s my assistant for the time being.”

  Jayden beamed at Tessa, and she smiled back.

  I forgot to add that he was good-looking. Unfortunately, the kid knew it.

  I was done with him, so I called the rest of the creative department out and introduced Tessa. Everyone said hi, and we moved on.

  The last set of offices was where management was located, and since Tessa had already met all of them in the meeting, I took her back to my office and her desk.

  When we reached her cubicle, I said, “Be careful with Jayden.”

  Tessa frowned, looking confused. “How so?”

  “He’s a little shit.”

  Tessa’s eyes rounded.

  “Unfortunately, he’s a little shit who is excellent at his job and is loved by clients. But other than that, I wouldn’t trust him any farther than I could throw him.”

  “What does that have to do with me?”

  She wasn’t that clueless, was she?

  “I saw the smile he gave you. He’ll be over here by the end of the day, asking you out.”

  Her jaw dropped, and she laughed. “He’s…he’s so young.”

  “Around twenty-five, I think. I hired him out of college.” The kid had also had an impressive GPA.

  “He’s not as young as I thought, but I’m still older than him. I can’t imagine he’d want anything to do with me.”

  “You know some guys like older women, right? Not that you are old. I already know from the temp agency that I have you beat by quite a few years.” I was thirty-six to her twenty-eight. “Anyway, mark my words. He’ll be over here by the end of the day, asking you out.”

  She was smiling, but I could see by the look on her face that she still didn’t believe me. “And why would he do that?”

  “Jayden thinks he’s on the track to management. What he doesn’t understand is, he is not management material. At least, not now. But that doesn’t stop him from trying to kiss my ass every chance he gets. And if he can romance my assistant to get a one-up, he’ll do that.”

  “Oh.” Tessa’s face did a one-eighty, and suddenly, she seemed almost sad.

  “You don’t want to go out with him, do you?”

  Her eyes bugged out. She didn’t even have to tell me her answer was no.

  “Good. He’s not worth your time. There are plenty of other men here you’d be better off dating. Unless you have a husband or boyfriend already.”

  She still had the same expression on
her face.

  “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t assume. There are plenty of men and/or women that you’d be better off dating.”

  “Um…no, I like men. And I’m very single.”

  The relief that went through me was unexpected. I wasn’t planning on dating Tessa myself, so I didn’t know why I would be happy that she liked men and that she wasn’t with anyone.

  “Just be careful with Jayden. His intentions might have nothing to do with work because he’d be blind not to notice how gorgeous you are, but I still wouldn’t trust him.”

  Tessa sucked in a small breath and held it.

  This woman had so many facial expressions, but I didn’t get to ask her about it because around the corner came Jayden.

  Sometimes, I hated being right.

  Chapter Six

  Tessa

  The next morning, I stopped and got myself two giant lattes on my way to work, and I had to tell myself several times that it was not appropriate to wear sunglasses on the job even if I wanted to hide my bloodshot eyes and the dark bags underneath them.

  Yesterday, Seth had been right. Jayden had come over to ask me out, but even if I hadn’t been warned, I would have said no.

  Jayden had slimy weasel written all over him, and I wanted nothing to do with that kind of man.

  I looked over at Seth’s office door as I took a seat. My new boss, however, was a different story. It was probably inappropriate that he had called me gorgeous yesterday, except he hadn’t been hitting on me. The matter-of-fact way in which he’d said it only made his statement that much more potent to me.

  If anyone was attractive, it was my boss. Handsome, muscular, and rich. He was a lot of women’s wet dream. And he’d told me that I was attractive as if everyone told me that on the daily.

  Attention from a rich guy was probably why I’d had a nightmare last night—because his money status had reminded me of high school. I’d thought I had escaped my nightmares when they hadn’t shown up the night before my new job. Last night, I hadn’t been as lucky.

  I collapsed in my chair, took a long drink of my caffeine, and tried not to think about my dreams.

  They were always some version of the same storyline. I was back at high school. Not my wonderful public school, but the private school my parents had forced me to attend because my father had gotten a job there.

  My family was working class and couldn’t afford any of the nice clothes, bags, or makeup the other kids had. But none of that seemed to matter when it came to my brother, probably because he was handsome and athletic. He could have shown up in a potato sack, and the jocks would have welcomed him, and the cheerleaders would have wanted to date him.

  I, on the other hand, had never been cool. Add in the fact that I was underprivileged and overweight, and I was the perfect recipe for being made fun of.

  In my dream, I was either stuck in a classroom or a dead-end hallway, surrounded by other high schoolers, chanting, “Bessa, Bessa, Bessa.”

  Bessa was their clever way of combining Bessy—aka a cow—and Tessa. Eventually, the dream progressed to where they either shoved me in a closet or a locker. I guessed, in my dreams, the lockers were big enough to fit me.

  I always woke up sweaty and panicky. Being trapped in a small space was my worst fear. I didn’t know if I was actually claustrophobic because elevators, airplanes, and tunnels didn’t bother me, but things like closets and sensory deprivation tanks did. Give me heights, spiders, snakes, and public speaking any day as long as I wasn’t stuck in a tiny, confined area.

  After I’d woken up at around two this morning, I had tossed and turned, getting small patches of sleep here and there. Today was going to be a long day.

  I finished my first cup of coffee, tossed it in the trash can, and went for my second one.

  “Have one of those for me?”

  I looked over the lid of my cup to see Seth standing in front of me, looking like he’d just walked off the cover of a catalog.

  “If I say no, will you fire me, so I can go home and go to sleep?”

  Seth shocked me by laughing.

  “I guess that’s a no?” I asked.

  “Sorry, but it’s going to take more than that to fire you. I already went long enough without a real assistant to help; I can’t afford to lose you now.”

  “I guess, on that note…” I reached around my computer and pulled out the latte I’d ordered for Seth. “Here you go.”

  The look of surprise on his face was almost worth it.

  “I read the rest of Jill’s notes. Large latte, whole or two percent milk, and no flavor shot.”

  “Thank you. I can’t believe you were going to keep this to yourself.” He took a sip. “You must really want that nap.”

  “I didn’t sleep very well last night, but I’ll survive. I have a date with my bed at seven tonight. At the latest.”

  “If you want, you can lie down on the couch in my office.”

  I shifted in my chair. It was a very nice gesture, but it seemed so intimate. I could never sleep with him in the same room. What if I drooled or something? And I couldn’t be sure this wasn’t a test.

  “I have an appointment that I will be gone all afternoon for, so if you decide to use it, it’s yours for a few hours.”

  That solved him watching me drool, but I still wasn’t sure if he was testing me.

  “Thank you, but I’ll be fine.”

  “Suit yourself.” He lifted his cup. “Thanks again for the coffee.”

  Around lunch, Seth came out of his office, where he’d been all morning. No workout for him today. “Tessa,” he said, putting on his suit jacket, “I’m off. I’ll be back around four.”

  He adjusted his sleeves, and I took a second to admire how handsome he looked.

  I would probably never get over his hairstyle because it looked more like something a surfer would wear rather than a CEO, but I liked it. I also noticed that I had yet to see him in a tie. I’d only known him two days, but he hadn’t worn one in any of his pictures either. I appreciated the no-tie look.

  “Only call you if the building is on fire or everyone goes on strike, right?”

  Seth looked up and laughed. “Did Jill actually leave that information?”

  “Yes.”

  He smiled like someone who was remembering something fondly. “It’s a joke between the two of us. My assistant before her called me for every little thing.”

  “So, I can call you about something less dramatic than the building burning down?”

  “Yes, but please make sure it’s important.”

  “Noted. Have a good afternoon.”

  “Thank you. You too.”

  Seth left, and I finished up what I was working on while I ate my lunch. About an hour later, another employee made their way over to my desk.

  “Is Crawford in?” the man said.

  “No, he has a meeting outside the building all afternoon.”

  “Okay.” He lifted a couple manila folders in his hands. “Can you put these on his desk? He wanted them by this afternoon.”

  I stood and took them from the man. “I’ll go and set them on his desk right now.” The last part of my sentence was incoherent because a huge yawn decided now was the time to come out of my mouth.

  The man raised his eyebrows. “Only the second day, and he’s already working you too hard?”

  I frowned. “How did you know it was my second day?”

  He looked at me awkwardly. “We met yesterday when Crawford introduced us.”

  I laughed nervously. “Right. Sorry. I am tired, but it’s not work-related.”

  “Okay, well, thanks for taking care of that,” the man said. He walked backward away from me, and I assumed it was because he was worried I wouldn’t put them on Seth’s desk.

  To show him I was delivering them immediately, I headed for Seth’s office. The man was gone before I opened the door.

  Seth’s desk was clean with everything in place, so I set the folders down in the middle.
They would be the first thing he saw when he got back.

  When I turned around, my eyes went straight to the couch. I had never wanted to lie down on one so badly before.

  Checking the clock on the wall, I noted that it wasn’t even two in the afternoon yet. I had two hours before the boss came back. And technically, he had told me I could rest.

  I went and grabbed my phone, set my alarm for two thirty—a half hour was all I needed—and I lay down.

  I shoved the corner pillow under my head and closed my eyes. I wondered if there was mouthwash in Seth’s bathroom that I could use when I woke up, but I barely had time to finish that thought before I fell asleep.

  Chapter Seven

  Seth

  I got back to work at five thirty. My afternoon meeting had taken longer than I’d thought it would, and I’d had a few errands to run.

  When I got up to my floor, it was quieter than when I had left. There were still some people walking around, but most had left for the day. Unless we were working on a huge project on a deadline, I tried to encourage my employees to not overwork themselves. I didn’t want them to get burned out and quit.

  When I got back by my office, it appeared that Tessa was already gone, and I found myself slightly disappointed she hadn’t stuck around. Not that I blamed her.

  I glanced over the wall to her cubicle and saw that her computer was on, so maybe she was still around.

  Figuring she’d show herself sooner rather than later, I went into my office to get a few things done before I went home for the night. Rob was supposed to get his project to me today, and I wanted to look at it before I left, just in case it needed revising before his meeting tomorrow. I was sure he’d emailed me the information, but I liked paper mock-ups when possible. I was able to catch more issues and get the full impact with paper versus a digital format.

  I pulled off my jacket as soon as I walked in. One thing I disliked about being a CEO was having to wear a suit every day. I could admit that I paid good money to get clothes that fit well and were comfortable, but I’d still rather wear jeans and a T-shirt.